


From Our Ashes

by kelly_kelly



Category: Original Work
Genre: Bisexual Characters, Enhanced Humans - Freeform, Fluff and Angst, Gay Characters, I really don't know how to tag, Multi, Violence, Witches, honestly i'm pretty sure all of my characters are bi or gay for some reason but whatevs, will most likely add more tags later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-08
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2020-01-06 15:38:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18391331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kelly_kelly/pseuds/kelly_kelly
Summary: Magic resides within everything. It can only be harnessed by certain races, however. Humans are incapable of using the magic that dwells in them while Witches have unlimited power. A third race, Aethers, are also capable of using magic. Although they are not as capable as Witches and are more similar physically to humans, they can still achieve incredible feats.Nearly all Witches show hostility towards both Humans and Aethers. So much so that a force of Humans and Aethers who are known as "Raiders" was created in order to exterminate hostile Witches.A former assassin, a tech genius, a skilled swordsman, and an ex-Raider are all brought together by Reina, a Witch and the only labeled S-Rank threat to humanity and Aetherians. This strange group of individuals will protect their newfound pseudo-family no matter what it takes.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone!
> 
> This is my first time writing on this platform and I'm pretty sure my writing is a little cringey (at least I think so) but I hope that you can enjoy this story of mine! Updates for this will be by no means concrete. In fact, it'll probably take me a while to update a chapter, so you probably shouldn't expect updates very often and I'm really sorry about that. I'm just a real slow writer, I guess. I also don't have a beta reader of any kind, so there will most likely be plenty of mistakes within my writing. If you see something, please let me know!
> 
> But without further ado, please enjoy!

Alexi woke up with a killer headache. He sat up in bed clutching his head as another wave of pain flooded his senses. He winced and pushed his reddish brown bangs back from his sweat-drenched forehead. Alexi quickly realized that not only was his head crying out, but his whole body was sore. He couldn’t really recall what he had done last night that could’ve caused all the searing pain.

Slowly moving his legs out from under the sheets, Alexi dragged his body out of bed and forced his arms to throw open the maroon curtains of his room. The bright rays of the sun rained down upon him driving him to cover his dark gray eyes from the overpowering light. After allowing the sunshine to flow into his room, Alexi took a few moments to let his eyesight adjust to the sudden change of brightness. He gradually opened up his eyes, blinking a few times until he was capable of staring at the soft baby blue sky. Alexi almost thought of admiring the view from his window, but another rush of pain crashed against his skull. 

Groaning softly, Alexi massaged his forehead with his fingers and turned his back to the window. He moved sluggishly toward the dark spruce wood closet that stood in the corner near his bed. He took a single glance at the scattered mess of blankets and sheets on his mattress, but it didn’t Alexi more than a second to decide against fixing it up. Using as much strength as he could muster with his aching arms, Alexi swung the brown closet doors open. He quickly scanned through the stash of clothing and plucked out a plain white shirt and a pair of jeans before tossing them onto his bed.

After changing into his new outfit, Alexi yawned and made his way over to the door of his room. He set his hand onto the copper door handle, letting the feeling of cool metal wash over his fingertips. As he opened the door, Alexi had expected to see an empty hallway, but instead came face-to-face with a familiar silver-haired figure. A familiar and particularly angered figure.

He blinked a few times in confusion. “Reina? What are ya doing up this early?”

“Early?” Reina reiterated with an irritated tone. The edges of her lips twitched upwards. “Alexi, you do realize what time it is, right?” 

Alexi rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and tried to calm his jumping nerves. “Um… not really? I just kinda assumed–”

The sting of the punch registered before Alexi even saw the fist coming. He flew backward onto the floor of his room. “Who the hell do you think you are!?” Reina yelled, lifting her fist and raring to go in for another punch.

“W-wha–?” Alexi stuttered out before Reina took a step forward into his sunlit room causing him to scoot back nervously. Rubbing his now aching cheek, Alexi made direct eye contact with the silver-haired menace. “Ya know what I’m like! My internal clock always wakes me up earlier than the rest of ya!” Reina raised an eyebrow and continued toward him. With every step she took forward, Alexi moved back until he was met with the wall. 

Reina glanced around the room, taking into account the still messy bed. Looking toward the window, her anger skyrocketed. “Tell me, Alexi, in what world does ‘midday’ constitute as ‘early’?” Her crystal blue eyes traced their way back to Alexi who began debating running for his life or lying to the world’s labeled number one most dangerous person. 

Luckily for him, another wave of pain crashed against his skull. Forgetting about the sting on his cheek and Reina’s blatant rage, Alexi quickly placed a hand in his forehead and winced. His head throbbed and a faint ringing in his ears began to steadily crescendo. Alexi clenched and ground his teeth together as the crushing feeling grew. 

“Alexi?” A soft voice filtered through the white noise in his brain. Sparing a moment to look up, the man in question was met with a face filled with overwhelming concern. Alexi was certain that he hadn’t ever seen Reina look so worried before in his life and, quite frankly, it was his last wish to have to see Reina like that, after everything she had given to him. So he quickly brushed off the pain as best he could and flashed her a smile.

“No need ta worry about me, Reina. I just happened ta wake up with a killer migraine,” Alexi supplied her. “I’m sure I’ll be fine in no time!” He waved off the pounding in his head and supplemented the silver-haired maiden with a toothy grin.

Alexi could still spot a faint glint of concern in Reina’s eyes in the split second before her body shifted away from him and towards the doorway. “Well, I guess that’s what you get for having too many drinks, huh?” she huffed, clearly sounding annoyed, but Alexi could tell that there wasn’t something quite right.

Regardless, Alexi felt that he shouldn’t push the subject, and casually responded, “Now, now, Reina. I know I tend ta drink a lot, but I’ve gotten so drunk to the extent that I’ve had ta break my sleep schedule and forget everything I did the night before. I ain’t that much of a drunk.”

Reina sighed, obviously unimpressed with Alexi’s excuses. “You say you forgot everything you did last night? That sure sounds like what happens when you drink a bit,  _ just a bit _ , too much, don’t you think?”

Alexi stood up and laughed nervously. “I guess yer right, huh?” He watched silently as Reina started for the door and her long hair swished from side to side.  _ Yeah, but… what  _ was _ I doin’ last night? Hell, what was I doin’ yesterday? _ A slight panic began to bubble up inside Alexi, but his thoughts were dispersed as quickly as they had appeared.

“Hey, Alexi! You don’t get to slack off anymore. Just because you woke up feeling like shit, doesn’t mean you get to bypass my rules.” Reina’s voice was just as hard and steely as before, but she didn’t look back at Alexi, only continuing forward out of the room.

“Yeah, yeah, I hear ya,” Alexi replied with his usual humor. He followed her out of his room and into the hallway. The two marched silently, with only the sound of their footsteps resounding through the narrow corridor to accompany them. 

Alexi yawned as they entered another, larger room. Through the door, three people seemed to be awaiting their arrival, some rather impatiently. “Took you long enough to get your ass out of bed,” a prickly voice commented at Alexi. Alexi didn’t bother turning to face his offender who was leaning casually against the wall, opting instead to take a seat at the polished spruce wood table. “Hey asshole, are you listening to me?” the same voice announced with their annoyance building.

With a soft sigh, Alexi leaned back in his chair and retorted, What was that? Sorry. I thought you were just talkin’ ta yourself again,” Alexi leaned back in his chair and looked over at the already irritated man. “I mean, don’t ya do that all the time, Leon?”

The grand reverberation of a fist being slammed against the wall put a smirk on Alexi’s face. He turned to see Leon’s fuming expression. Leon adjusted his black framed glasses before curling his hands into fists and strolling towards Alexi, his eyes twitching. As he made his way over to the table, however, the sound of quiet, mocking laughter stopped him in his tracks. Leon swung his head around. “The hell are you laughing about, Tristan?”

Sitting across from Alexi was Tristan, who casually placed the teacup he had been sipping from onto the porcelain saucer in front of him. He flipped back his long, brown hair and gave Leon a smug grin. “Me? Oh, please, don’t mind about me, I’m just enjoying the free entertainment.” Leon’s hazel eyes seemed to become red with rage. 

“You people…” He growled out. He mumbled death threats underneath his breath as his whole body shook with incessant fury.

Alexi sighed, taking the moment to enjoy a few seconds of peace. Unfortunately, Tristan, being the habitual narcissistic pretty-boy that he was born to be, was not willing to leave any stone unturned. “So, Alexi, what reason could you possibly have that you just had to disregard the rules placed upon us by our gracious Miss Reina?” Tristan’s dark olive green eyes glinted with mischief.

Alexi cringed at the odd formality that Tristan always used when addressing Reina. He glanced over at the silver-haired woman standing in the spot that Leon had previously been. She looked unbothered and, if anything, was quite pleased with the honorific.  _ So that’s how we’re supposed to get on her good side, _ Alexi thought. “There really ain’t much I can say ‘bout it. I woke up feelin’ like my body was tryin’ ta kill itself.”

Tristan raised an eyebrow precariously, placing his elbows onto the table and intertwining his fingers where he rested his chin upon. “Is that so? Well, I do believe that I woke up with barely any feeling in either of my arms. It had seemed as if they had been ripped from my body, but you don’t see me complaining, now do you?” Tristan’s smile grew. “Not only that but isn’t that what you deserve for spending all your time drowning yourself in alcohol?”

Grimacing, Alexi replied, “Hey, would ya imagine that. Reina said the same thing, but I can swear to ya both that I was  _ not _ gettin’ my ass drunk.” 

“But isn’t that what you always say?”

Just as Alexi was about to make up a sad excuse, a voice from the kitchen interrupted them. “Could you two please stop blabbering? It might make my ears bleed.” Alexi turned to the voice’s origin. A cup of coffee in hand, Marco looked the same as always. A stoic and seemingly emotionless face. He outstretched his hand with the coffee toward Leon who still stood motionless rambling on about death threats. “Hey, Leon, I made another cup of coffee like you wanted,” Marco announced, his tone was just as devoid of emotion as his expression.

Leon’s head snapped up at the sound of Marco’s voice, instantaneously ending his incoherent muttering. He pushed up his glasses with his forefinger and smoothed his golden hair back as he strolled over to Marco. Plucking the cup of coffee out of other man’s hand, Leon gave the dark liquid a short staredown before chugging down the entirety of it. Alexi flinched back in disgust while Tristan went back to sipping his own bitter drink. “Thanks, Marco,” Leon said, his voice much softer than it had been only moments before. He placed the mug back into Marco’s hands. “If you wouldn’t mind, could you make me another? I can already feel the effect of the last few wearing off.”

Without even the slightest bit of hesitation, Marco nodded and turned back to enter the kitchen. Alexi cleared his throat as Marco disappeared from the room. “Um… ‘the last few?’ How many cups of that damn stuff have ya had already?”

“How the hell should I know? Eight or something, I guess.” 

“Ten, actually,” came the faint and distant reply from the next room.

Leon shrugged. “What he said.”

Alexi fought the reflex to gag. “I can’t believe ya can actually drink that stuff.”

Leon snorted. “I could ask you the same thing. How much alcohol do you normally drink within a week?”

Alexi put his hands up in mock surrender. “Could today for once not be ‘bully Alexi day?’ I’m startin’ to get real sick of this maltreatment. What do ya say, Reina?”

“Last time I checked, you weren’t the one in charge of making the rules around here, Alexi,” Reina replied, her voice cutting in sharply. “In fact, I’m pretty sure you just broke one of those rules today,” she glared daggers at him, “so I say, anything goes.”

Alexi pouted away silently just as Marco appeared with Leon’s eleventh cup of coffee. “Nevermind that, Reina, but when are we going to  _ do _ something? We’ve done nothing but sit around here for weeks now,” Leon complained right before downing his coffee.

Then, as if on cue, the building began to shake.


	2. Chapter Two

“What the fuck was that?!” Leon’s voice shrieked after the first quake was over. He was leaning against the wall for support, his mug that once held coffee had been reduced to nothing but shards of porcelain on the floor. Marco was beside him, his hand gripping Leon’s shoulder like a lifeline. 

Reina, who had stood casually leaning against the wall, was now in an attentive stance. Her piercing blue eyes darted around the room searching for any internal damage to the building. “It looks like you might get that ‘something’ you were waiting for, Leon,” she called over. “If they’ve found this place, then we have no other choice than to leave. You got that, Alexi?”

The chair that Alexi had been seated in had toppled over in initial tremor. Having fallen onto the floor like an awkward, Alexi sat up and massaged the back of his head. “The world’s really tryin’ ta kill me today,” he mumbled.

“If you just practiced a bit more on your grace, you wouldn’t be in such a position,” Tristan spoke up, still sipping on his tea.

“Not everyone’s got reflexes like yours, ya know.” Alexi was beginning to loathe the other man. As soon as the building had begun to shake, Tristan had slipped out of his seat just before the table had been able to fall atop of him. Somehow, someway, he had also managed to save his tea from inevitably becoming but a puddle on the floor. 

“Now’s not the time for your useless talk. We’ve got things to take care of now,” Reina interrupted. “Now that they can see us, the barrier I made won’t last very long.”

Alexi stood up, brushing off his shirt. “Well ain’t that a pain.” He looked over to Leon, with an annoyed expression. “You shoulda just kept your mouth shut. Then, we wouldn’t have ta deal with all this.”

Leon seemed about ready to launch himself at the redhead, but Marco held him back. Instead, he simply replied, “Since your the one having all the bad luck, don’t you think it might be your fault?” Under his breath, he added, “Shitty bastard.”

“Hey, I heard that!” Alexi shouted, pointing accusingly at the blonde.

“Didn’t I tell you to shut up already?!” Reina yelled. Along with her voice came another shake to the building. “There’s no point staying here anymore.” A smile crept its way across her face. “Why don’t we go welcome our guests?” She made her way over to the door, giving the knob a slight turn before swinging it open with all her might. All four men looked at each other, knowing that they couldn’t say “no,” they followed their silver-haired leader out into the cool autumn outdoors.

Around the small group of five, trees with leaves of gold, red, and orange surrounded them. The sun’s bright rays made it almost impossible at first for Alexi to see much of anything. He placed a hand just above his eyes to act as a shield while he looked abroad to see the small army ahead of them. Impressed by the number of soldiers, Alexi whistled. “Well ain’t this a nice little surprise.” A gust of wind blew around them, causing the leaves to sing with their own anticipation. Alexi turned to look over at Reina’s back, her long hair fluttering along with the breeze. “So, do ya have a plan, Reina?” No response. Frowning slightly, Alexi walked a bit further forward until he could see Reina’s face. “Hey Reina, are ya listenin’ ta–” he stopped mid-sentence when he noticed the glimmer in Reina’s blue eyes. He had seen that sparkle enough times in his life to know what she had in mind.

Reina was smiling now. She was positively filled with excitement. It had been a while since the last time the Raiders had found managed to locate them. But this time, the one leading the army was someone who Reina remembered and knew quite well, instead of just some nameless soldier. Taking a step forward, Reina called out, “I have to say I’m pleasantly surprised. How long has it been since you lead the charge on me, Commander Archie?”

In the distance, the man in question grunted. He was a large man, muscular, but old. His hair and beard were white with age. He wore heavy armor that provided a steady defense but also restricted his movement, although only a small bit. His dark brown eyes glared daggers towards the witch. “I have no obligation to answer a witch. Especially not you,” he responded, his voice gruff and warning. 

Reina only looked more amused. “That really is a shame. I was really hoping we could just sit and chat.” She took another step forward. The front lines of the small army readied their weapons. “Though I guess it wouldn’t be as exciting that way.” With a snap of her fingers, Reina changed the course of the wind. It spun rapidly, creating two small tornadoes. By simply flicking her wrist, she sent the funnels of air at the sides of the army, wiping out about one hundred Raiders in an instant. Some of the soldiers moved backward in distress while others seemed less than fazed by the attack. “Don’t worry, they aren’t dead. Just unconscious for the time being,” Reina assured the fearful Raiders.

Then, a shining blue pillar of light erupted from where the Raiders’ commander was standing. His face was scrunched up, fury ever-present in his eyes. The course of the wind changed again, only this time, it swirled around the commander as blue particles came together in the formation of a weapon in his hand. “Thou who carries the runes of a god: Gungnir!” The particles were now not just the shape of a weapon but had  _ become _ the weapon itself. In the commander’s hand was a fully formed iron spear. Ornate golden wings flitted out of the side near the tip. The pointed spearhead itself was decorated in black runes which emitted a sinister blue glow. The shaft of the weapon was enveloped in golden coils that shined in the sun’s light.

Without sparing even a single second, Archie threw the spear towards Reina using all his might. It came flying at the witch at a speed almost faster than any of the others could comprehend. Although it had been set on course straight for Reina’s head, it instead lodged itself in a translucent purple barrier. The spear dissolved back into blue particles before reappearing in the commander’s hand. Reina dispelled her magic barrier and let her grin widen as she maintained eye contact with her enemy.

Archie made the first move. Using his spear as a pointer, he commanded his army. “Men, women, charge forward!” The army of Raiders surged forward, each brandishing their own weapon. 

Reina smirked as she saw the small army of Raiders quickly approaching them. “Well now, are you ready, gentlemen? It seems like this’ll be a bit of fun.”

Alexi whined, “Really? I for one think that this is all just a load of work.” Reina gave him a disapproving look. “But I guess if that’s what ya want, I can’t say nothin’,” he added quickly, scratching at the back of his neck nervously.

“I believe this is a perfect chance to get back into shape,” Tristan offered, tying his hair into a ponytail with the aid of a navy blue scrunchie. “It has been quite a while since we last put our skills to the test.”

Leon sneered, “Like I need to test anything.”

“I believe Tristan was also referring to your overall body mass,” Marco provided.

Leon flinched. Grinding his teeth together, he asked, “And what the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“I was not really implying anything at all,” Marco replied calmly.

Alexi was about to take the opportunity to make a jab at Leon, but he noticed the change of pressure around Reina. She turned to him with a wide grin on her face. “No more talking! I’m going for the final boss!” Then, with an immense jump, Reina was soaring through the air. She flipped around to face the others. “Just remember not to kill anyone, got it?” she shouted as she directed herself in the direction of the army’s leader.

Reina landed on the ground with grace, barely making a sound. Facing Archie, she snapped her fingers once, creating thousands of small purple pellets that darted toward the man at the speed of a bullet. Archie spun his spear, perfectly intercepting each projectile that came his way. In a swift movement, he closed the distance between the two and jabbed his weapon at Reina. She sidestepped out of the way and grabbed onto the spear’s shaft, intending to pull it forward. Just as her fingers made contact, the spear dissolved as it had when it hit her barrier earlier and reappeared in Archie’s other hand. He thrust the spear back at her, but Reina ducked at just the right moment before attempting to sweep the commander’s feet from under him. Jumping backward, Archie avoided the attack and readied himself for more.

Reina relaxed her stance and gave the commander a sweet smile. “You’ve really improved with that sharp stick of yours. The last time we fought you were still a little soft, don’t you think?”

Archie still stood tense, awaiting an attack. “I will not allow myself to converse with a witch.”

Reina’s smile didn’t falter. Instead, she commented, “It must have been at least a decade or so ago, right? I don’t remember your hair being so white before.”

Archie charged at her, his spear angled towards her head. Just before he could impale her, Reina jumped out of the way and hovered comfortably in the air above his reach. “But you’re still so easily provoked,” she called out from the sky.

“Well, would ya look at that. Reina’s really havin’ a blast over there, huh?” Alexi noticed, looking yonder and spotting Reina up in the blue expanse. Looking back to the ground he saw that the other Raiders were beginning to approach quickly. He stretched his arms out over his head and broke out a shark-like grin. “Maybe I’ll go ahead an’ jump in too.” He crouched slightly before disappearing in a flash, leaving only red sparks of electricity where he once stood.

Leon clicked his tongue. “He sure changed his mind fast.”

Tristan laughed softly. “But he isn’t wrong. Miss Reina does seem to be having a particularly good time,” he replied just as an explosion went off in the distance. “Perhaps I should also take my leave.” Turning on his heel, he casually strolled in the opposite direction that Alexi had departed off to.

“It seems that we have been left to ‘defend the fort’ as I’m sure some would say,” Marco stated, his dark brown eyes staring intently on the wave of Raiders drawing near them.

Leon yawned, removing his glasses for a moment to rub at his tired eyes. “Shit. Looks like that wasn’t enough coffee after all. These damn bastards better be able to keep me awake,” he muttered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to comment if you liked this chapter (or even if you didn't, I'd appreciate some constructive criticism)!
> 
> Thanks again for reading, and I'll see you next time!


	3. Chapter Three

When Alexi had reappeared in front of the oncoming soldiers they surrounded him in an instant, weapons at the ready. He stayed still, waiting for one of them to attack. To his disappointment, none of the nameless soldiers seemed to take his offer. “C’mon show a little more resolve will ya?” he pouted. Raising his hand, Alexi produced three throwing knives seemingly out of nowhere. Grasping each of them between his fingers, he let the crisp metal reflect the harsh sunlight. Then, with a swift movement of his arm, he launched the knives, sending them flying directly into three soldiers. All three targets collapsed without fail. They hadn’t been hit in any vital areas, but the slight spark of red electricity showed the reason behind their loss of consciousness.

At the sight of their fallen comrades, several Raiders began to charge at him. “Now this is more like it!” Alexi proclaimed. Materializing more knives, he tossed them at each approaching soldier. Each of them dropping to the ground like flies.

Behind him, a Raider wielding a lance raced toward him. Before the Raider even had a chance to strike, Alexi disappeared once again in a spark of red. The soldier came to an abrupt stop as he lost sight of Alexi. “You lookin’ for me?” Pain flared in the soldier’s back as a strong electric shock coursed through him and brought him to unconsciousness. Alexi stood triumphantly as the Raider fell. Standing triumphantly, Alexi’s smile didn’t falter as he eyed the rest of the soldiers. Their numbers had certainly dwindled in the short time since his arrival.

With all of the braver and more reckless Raiders already on the ground, things had come to a standstill. The few remaining soldiers were much more wary of Alexi. Although he was disappointed at the turn of events, Alexi didn’t let his smile falter. Rather, with a quick flick of his wrist, he sent a knife hurtling in a random direction toward one of the Raiders. 

But Alexi didn’t hear the telltale shock of electricity.

He whirled his head around and was surprised to see that his knife had been caught just before it was able to hit its target. The one who had grabbed hold of the knife was a young man with unruly auburn hair and heterochromatic eyes. One of his irises was a piercing gold while the other was a dark navy blue. His attire differed from uniforms of the other Raider soldiers. Instead of the drab and blank white cloaks that Alexi was familiar with seeing among the other Raiders. This new challenger’s clothing was embellished with glistening gemstones and intricate golden designs. The decorations were definitely runes with the purpose of protection. Alexi knew that all Raiders’ uniforms were enchanted with defensive magic. But extra ornaments were only added to the uniforms of higher ranked officials of the Raiders.

There was no way the man standing before him, white cape waving in the wind, was an adult. He looked to be about a teenager still.  _ There ain’t no way this kid is a high-ranking official… _ Alexi thought.

“Are you alright?” came the voice of the teen. He turned to the soldier whom he had saved from Alexi’s knife. “You, as well as the others here, should regroup with everyone in the main force,” he instructed. Facing Alexi, who was still smiling, he narrowed his eyes in scrutiny and stared at him with firm conviction. “I’ll take of this here.”

“A-are you certain that is a good decision, Lieutenant?” the Raider asked cautiously. Alexi was surprised, to say the least.  _ Seriously? This kid is a lieutenant? Today really is full of surprises _ . 

The kid’s gaze on Alexi didn’t waver. He simply replied, “I’m sure that I can handle this here.” The other Raiders hesitated for a second before rushing off.

Alexi watched as they scurried off toward where Leon and Marco were keeping guard. “Well, that’s a bit disappointin’. I was really startin’ to enjoy that,” he stated, returning his gaze to the lone Raider challenging him. “But I guess I got somethin’ more interesting anyway. Who are ya anyway?”

“My name is Arthur King, second lieutenant of Commander Archie Edda’s Raid,” he began, his voice strong and determined. He pointed his forefinger at Alexi accusingly. “And I won’t allow you to hurt anyone else, foul villain!” 

_ So this kid’s  _ that _ kinda person, _ Alexi thought, cringing.  _ I can practically smell the self-righteousness. _ “Ya can say that stuff all ya want, kid,” Alexi started, relishing in the sight of the young lieutenant frustrate at the last word. “But can ya really back that up with anythin’?”

“I will show you my strength,” Arthur responded. “In order to defeat you and to protect everyone else.” A pillar of blinding blue light shot toward the sky, surrounding the Raider. It was similar to the spectacle that the commander had shown off, only this time the pillar wasn’t as large but still equally impressive. The air around Alexi grew faint and the wind blew rapidly in every which way as if he was standing in the middle of a storm. Small blue particles began to once again take the form of a weapon in the Raider’s hand. “Thou who vanquishes evil and serves only the one true king: Excalibur!” Arthur grasped hold of the newly created weapon and swung it with both hands, causing Alexi to brace himself as a wave of dust and dirt came his way at full force from behind the wind. 

As the screen of dust subsided, Alexi was able to get a clear look at Arthur’s weapon of choice. It was a large greatsword, the edges of the blade were sharp and looked like they could easily slice through a person like butter. The hilt of the sword was golden and curved around the bottom of the blade in the shape of a dragon. In the eyes of the dragon were two red gemstones that glistened menacingly in the sun’s light.

Although impressed by the young lieutenant’s ability, Alexi still wasn’t convinced of the actual fighting skill the teen was capable of.  _ Let’s see what this kid can do _ . He created a singular knife and threw it at a speed that most Raiders wouldn’t be able to see. With both hands, Arthur lifted up his mighty sword and deflected the projectile with ease, not even bothering to look in the direction in which it came at him. “Not bad,” Alexi commended quietly. “Not bad at all…” 

Arthur took a fighting stance, his sword gripped tightly with both of his hands in front of him. Staring steadily ahead at Alexi, awaiting the man’s next move. Alexi didn’t make a move, instead deciding to turn the battle into a tense standoff.

The two stood in silence, only the occasional breeze creating noise around them. 

It was Arthur who made the first move to attack. Rushing quickly toward Alexi, he swung the greatsword, aiming directly for the man’s chest. Alexi reacted swiftly by parrying the attack with a dagger of his own. The clash of the two weapons rang out effortlessly in the slight silence on the battlefield. The weight and strength of Arthur’s Excalibur were much more than Alexi’s small dagger could hold onto for long. Feeling his weapon begin to crack from under the pressure, Alexi jumped backward and landed himself a distance away from the young lieutenant. He let his damaged dagger to fall to the ground. Not allowing Alexi to materialize another knife, Arthur charged at full speed. 

“Y’know, your skills really are somethin’ else,” Alexi began once Arthur was close. “But it’s too bad,” he continued. He looked directly at Arthur, a playful smirk adorned on his face. “Yer just not fast enough.” Just as the blade of Excalibur came close to slicing through into Alexi’s side, he vanished. Arthur’s eyes widened in astonishment as he lost sight completely of his opponent. His blade sliced through the air. Feeling a shiver crawl up his spine, Arthur turned around, but still, his reaction was too slow. Alexi’s elbow slammed into the Raider’s back with intense force, causing Arthur to stumble forward and cough out in pain from the impact.

Alexi watched the Raider take heaving breaths and was less than thrilled to see that the boy wasn’t going to fall unconscious anytime soon. Alexi saw the grip on the greatsword tighten and readied himself for another attack. Sure enough, the lieutenant came running toward Alexi once more.

However, it wasn’t Alexi who seemed to disappear. Arthur appeared in front of Alexi in a split second. The latter, although stunned in bewilderment, was able to conjure a dagger and block the incoming slash just before the greatsword was able to cut through him. Due to the massive amount of force in Arthur’s attack, Alexi had no choice but to fall back before he was eviscerated from the pressure alone.

_ The hell was that? _ Alexi’s confusion and shock were apparent in each of his panting breaths.  _ An increase in speed? That’s impossible! Even a veteran Raider wouldn’t be able ta up their speed in an instant, let alone ta that extent! _ His own eyes locked onto the boy’s gaze. Arthur’s determination didn’t waver for even a second. It was completely set in stone.  _ I’ll have ta keep my distance _ . 

Arthur broke the silence and pointed Excalibur at his enemy. “Why is it that you ally yourself with a witch?”

Alexi relaxed his posture before replying, “Do I need a reason? The choices I make ain’t nobody’s business but my own.”

“Do you have no sense of justice?” Arthur spat loudly.

Alexi sighed. “Justice?” He scoffed at the word as it rolled off his tongue. “Are ya sure ya know what yer talkin’ about?” 

“What–?” the Raider started, but Alexi interrupted.

“I’m sure ya know this, but I’m not exactly a good person. In fact, none of us here are what ya would call  _ good _ people,” Alexi explained. “So when ya talk about this ‘justice’ stuff, we have no idea what the hell yer goin’ on about.”

The Raider opened his mouth to respond, but Alexi cut him off. “‘Sides, even if we did know, it wouldn’t change a thing,” Alexi paused. “Reina saved us. We’ll follow her anywhere.”

Arthur was obviously taken aback by Alexi’s reply but decided that he should simply focus on defeating his opponent rather than push his ideals onto someone while on a battlefield. “Maybe after your defeat, you will be willing to listen to reason,” he announced. Alexi only gave a smirk in return.

This time, Alexi made the first move. He couldn’t afford to allow Arthur a chance to attack, now that he had seen what the lieutenant was capable of.  _ I really should find a way to end this already _ . Three more daggers were formed in an instant and thrown at speeds almost unimaginable just as quickly. Arthur brought up his sword to block the incoming blades, but instead of hearing the clang of metal hitting metal, he watched as the daggers flew forward and wrapped around Excalibur with the aid of sturdy metal wires. As the wires latched around his weapon, Arthur could feel a pull attempting to rob him of his sword. Looking ahead, he saw Alexi using both of his hands to pull on the wires that were attached to each thrown dagger. Arthur held steadfast onto Excalibur, unwilling to let himself become unarmed. 

“How does it feel to know that yer strugglin’ to fight a normal human right now?” Alexi asked out of the blue, catching Arthur completely off guard.

“What do you mean ‘human’? Aren’t you an Aether?” Arthur challenged, still grasping his sword tightly.

“Nah, I ain’t an Aether. At least not biologically anyway.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Arthur questioned with slightly shortened breath. His knuckles had begun to turn white from his grip.

“All it means is that, as it turns out, as long as ya have enough of the right drugs, a whole lot of experimentation, an’ the perfect test subject, ya can create your very own Aether,” Alexi explained, still smiling. “Only downside is that ya might end up havin’ to kill a whole lot a people for the rest of your life.”

Arthur’s eyes widened in disbelief. He didn’t know what to think. Human experimentation? Was that something that was happening right underneath their noses? He couldn’t bear to think of all the innocent people who may have lost their lives to something as vile as that.

“I don’t blame ya for not knowin’. Nobody knew it was happenin’ or that it was even possible until important people started dyin’,” Alexi remarked. “But let’s stop talkin’ ‘bout the boring stuff, yeah?” As Alexi finished, he pulled tightly onto the wires like his life depended on it and sent a surge of red electricity through the metal, which made its way swiftly to Arthur. The young lieutenant ground his teeth together and grimaced in pain as his body flooded with the sensation of electricity.

Alexi let go of the wires and observed the red sparks as they began to dissipate. He moved in a flash toward Arthur and was about to strike when his mind began to go blank. Time seemed to stop in its tracks. Piercing white noise ravaged his hearing. A voice rang out in his head. It was a familiar voice; one he had gotten used to hearing all the time in the past.  _ C’mon, Alexi. One time wouldn’t hurt. _ Alexi couldn’t think coherently anymore. His thoughts were taken over by the voice and only the voice.  _ Just this one. This pitiful child who talks about the world that he’s never even seen. _ Alexi’s usually playful smirk morphed into a crazed one.  _ Kill him. You’ve waited so long for the opportunity, so don’t let this chance slip away. _ Alexi conjured a dagger, the blade sharper than any other he had created. He raised it up to Arthur’s neck, his heart beating faster in anticipation. 

Only inches away from committing a sin, a different voice broke through in Alexi’s head.  _ Just remember not to kill anyone, got it? _ The earlier words of Reina crashed into his mind. Registering his current situation with lightning speed, Alexi dropped the dagger that was about to slice through a young boy’s neck and raised up his leg to kick the Raider instead.

When time resumed back to normal, Arthur flew backward, the grip on his sword still strong. He landed a fair distance away from Alexi, who had barely moved from his initial position, was breathing deeply and sweating intensely. “That was too close,” Alexi whispered quietly to himself. “A little longer an’ would’ve killed that kid. Not to mention Reina would’ve taken my head for that.” He glanced at the dagger on the ground, it’s sharp edge shining in the sun. He settled his gaze to his hands, which were trembling uncontrollably. Clenching them tightly, Alexi took a few more deep breaths to steady his heartbeat.  _ I really need to work on that a bit more. _

Alexi heard a faint grunt in the distance. He saw Arthur still standing, although covered in several minute injuries. “Ya still want ta continue with this? Yer not gonna win.”

“Don’t… underestimate me,” he panted. “I won’t lose to the likes of you, a criminal!”

“Name’s Alexi Khirschkokov. Use it as informally as ya like, but just don’t call me a criminal. It’s embarrassin’,” Alexi admitted. “But we’ve already talked all ‘bout me anyway, so let’s just get on with round two, yeah?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading the third chapter of my story!
> 
> As always don't forget to comment or leave kudos is you like!  
> Also I'm trying to see if I can create a legitimate schedule for updating, but I'm not sure yet if it'll work. So I won't confirm anything yet, but I hope I'll be able to soon!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading the first chapter of From Our Ashes. I hope you'll stay tuned for the next chapter as well!
> 
> Don't forget to leave a kudo or a comment, if you like! Please let me know about your opinion of my writing and of my story in the comments. Also, don't refrain from leaving helpful criticism down there too, as I would love to know how I can improve my writing. And once again, if you see anything grammatically incorrect, let me know!


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